Many countries and regions are introducing policies aimed at reducing the environmental footprint from the energy sector and increasing the use of renewable energy. In the United States, a number of initiatives have been taken at the state level, from renewable portfolio standards (RPSs) and...

This study identifies a strategy that (1) provides future energy services for Hainan in the least environmentally degrading way, (2) eliminates the need to build significant amounts of new fossil-fueled, electric generating capacity, saving capital to invest in other development projects, (3)...

This paper compares the financing costs of wind turbine powerplants with those of fossil powerplants. The goal of this examination is to determine the extent to which these costs differ and what the sources of such differences may be. The discussion is organized in the following fashion. Section...

For better or worse, natural gas has become the fuel of choice for new power plants being built across the United States. According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), natural gas combined-cycle and combustion turbine power plants accounted for 96% of the total generating capacity...

The amount of wind power capacity being installed globally is surging, with the United States the world leader in terms of annual market share for three years running (2005-2007). The rapidly growing market for wind has been a double-edged sword, however, as the resulting supply-demand imbalance...

The market for long-term bulk power is becoming increasingly competitive and mature. Given that many privately developed power projects have been or are being developed in the US, it is possible to begin to evaluate the performance of the market by analyzing its revealed prices. Using a...

The wind power industry in the U.S. has been on a growth binge in recent years, and the rapid pace of development has made it difficult to keep up with trends in the marketplace. Yet the need for timely, objective information on the wind industry and its progress has never been greater. This...

The rapid pace of wind power development in the U.S. over the last decade has outstripped the ability of most project developers to provide adequate equity capital and make efficient use of project-related tax benefits. In response, the sector has created novel project financing structures that...

Battery charging systems are very important in many developing countries where rural families cannot afford a solar-battery home system or other electricity options, but they can afford to own a battery (in some cases more than one battery) and can pay for it to be charged on a regular basis....

Markets for renewable energy have historically been motivated primarily by policy efforts, but a less widely recognized driver is poised to also play a major role in the coming years: utility integrated resource planning (IRP). Resource planning has re-emerged in recent years as an important...